Tip The Tow?

[Tom.B]

This is the boat I want but it’s more than I want to spend. I don’t want to cut into my eating money.

https://ellisboatbrokerage.com/ellis-32-flybridge-cruiser-32003/

Interesting choice. 440hp is a lot for a 12k cruising speed. ;-)

 

[Gordon J]

And for that kind of service

In my neck of the woods, a tow from 20 miles offshore would be at least $1500 to $2000 for a non member. Greater than $300 per hour and nearly a 6 hr evolution. (of course it depends on towing and rowed vessels...remember it is dock to dock for the tow vessel).

Captains would make from $300 to $450 on that tow....but still would average less than $600l per week per year....unless there was work outside towing available like diving, maintenance, etc.

Maybe the reason I did well on tips is because often, I would troubleshoot the vessels problem after the tow and it wasnt uncommon for me to save the guy a long wait and ultimately a $500 mechanic bill. At least I offered water, sunscreen, or more importantly bug repellent and sometimes just downright kindness on a day that wasnt turning out so great for the boat owner.

Plus.... the comment on having a nice dinner was right on....many a thankful tow was so pleased, they delighted in saying go have a nice dinner on me.

I would gladly tip. For fulling the terms of my contract, probably not. Dock hands who do an excellent job, they get tipped. But the emphasis is on doing more than expected, beyond normal levels of service. I don’t know what a skipper on a tow boat makes, and it is not my business. That is between him and the owner. It is my business to pay the amount contracted.


Meanwhile, I think it is criminal not to pay a living wage. If we stopped enabling owners by subsidizing salaries, folks would make a decent wage.

If an electrician comes to your house, do you tip him or her? What about the mechanic at your local garage?

And to all of you who tip, thanks. You are subsidizing salaries at no cost to me.

 

[FlyWright]

Parks, that tow trip would have made a great GoPro video! Glad it went so well.

 

[BandB]

Meanwhile, I think it is criminal not to pay a living wage.

That's the problem, it's only immoral. Now if it was criminal, things would be different.

 

[BruceK]

And that's where I think this "tipping thing" is screwed up. A waitress asks you what you want to eat, brings you food cooked by someone else and refills your drink and expects a 20% tip. She is indoors, protected from heat cold and rain. A dockhand runs down the dock in the heat, cold or rain, grabs your lines and fends off your $200K boat and gets $5, maybe $10, maybe nothing at all.
How is this fair?

I think these are entirely distinguishable cases.
The dockhand is likely properly paid a wage commensurate with his job.The wait person(PC alert) is traditionally not paid a proper wage(Aust excluded) and expects, and is expected by employer and diner, to work essentially for tips.
Odd but nevertheless reality.Reversible? Perhaps,but the wait person situation is so entrenched, could it really ever change?

 

[McGillicuddy]

Most tow captains who worked for me had another job such as captain on an excursion boat and only worked tow jobs on their off days. As such I had to have a list of at least five qualified captains per day to ensure availability. Nevertheless, their hourly wage was $35 per hour. Paid dock to dock. No pay for standby but it was their time off so they usually weren’t hanging around the office anyway.
We had one captain who would only drive his own boat. So it had to be fitted out and logo’d by me. He got 60% of the fee.

 

[markpierce]

I'd bet that most all other societies would say Americans over-tip. And in some countries, tipping would be insulting. Don't foreigners under-tip American workers?

I find it hard to justify tipping Swiss restaurant workers since Switzerland's restaurant prices are two to three times more than neighboring countries.

 

[HopCar]

Parks, that tow trip would have made a great GoPro video! Glad it went so well.

The video would have looked like this, only moving. My buddy, Darrell, rode the boat. He lost his hat and froze his ass. I had a nice hot coffee and drove to the marina to pick him up.

 

[Sabre602]

And that's where I think this "tipping thing" is screwed up. A waitress asks you what you want to eat, brings you food cooked by someone else and refills your drink and expects a 20% tip. She is indoors, protected from heat cold and rain. A dockhand runs down the dock in the heat, cold or rain, grabs your lines and fends off your $200K boat and gets $5, maybe $10, maybe nothing at all.

How is this fair?

The server doesn't pocket the tip; it's pooled and shared by the entire kitchen staff. It's not the custom everywhere on earth, but it certainly is in the US and the waitstaff and others depend upon it.

We're all used to the disinterested college kid who doesn't care about the job and it shows, but if you've ever been fortunate enough to be served by a true professional, it's a wonderful thing...night and day difference from someone just carrying out a plate of food.

 

[psneeld]

You cant use hourly wages on part time work to establish much of anything.

Union wages for crane operators on some jobs are sky high....but they dont make that 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year.....every year. At least not the vast majority of the ones I have worked with on bridge projects.

So bottom line to me is..... even after becoming a much better tipper than I was when I was in the service....

I live a pretty good life on a fraction of most large boat owners probably have. But thankfully through smart investing, I usually can spare $5, $10 or $20 dollars that I think will let someone know I appreciate what they do....even if only mediocre (as it might be their best) and it might brighten their day. Lazy, or difficult people usually dont get tipped, nor do staff on the higher end of the pay scale or owners....unless really special. An I will tip anyone if I think it is a nice gesture.... doctors, kawyers, bankers, mechanics, plumbers (especially working on sanitary issues .... ), electricuans, etc as to me its not really about living wage.

I certainly prefer that over the government taking my money and distributing it "fairly" in their eyes.....

Maybe it's because I dont see eye to eye with them much lately....

 

[Cigatoo]

“If an electrician comes to your house, do you tip him or her?” Absolutely if they do not own the company.
What about the mechanic at your local garage? Absolutely again if the do not own the company. Makes me feel good to reward someone for working diligently. Especially in this day and age. The key words here are “Makes me feel good”. To each their own.

 

[Pedro]

It is all a matter of culture. In japan, if you try to tip anyone for any service, he will return the money and even be offended. In England, if you undertip a taxi driver, he will curse you and may even trow the coins at you, like it happened me.
In most of Europe, a 10% restaurant tip is plenty, now try that in NYC... Italians never ever tip anything, but if you are a foreigner, a tip is always expected. I could go on and on, based on my travels; I make a point now of asking around when I get to a new place.

 

[psneeld]

Absolutely... local custom swings a lot.

However, being a decent human being and talking to whomever you are trying to reward will lead you to a path of reasonable solution.

Many people suck at communicating their wishes.

 

[Irish Rambler]

Just adding my two pence.
It's not obligatory to tip a taxi driver in England but usually people do with some loose change, if the drivers throws it at you take his number and report him.
I never came across an Australian that tips and its even hard to get them to buy a round of drink. In Ireland if you are in company it is normal etiquette for each married male (accompanied by his wife) to buy a round of drinks in turn. If there are a large group having an evening meal and drinks its customary for every male to place say 40 Euro into a (kitty), pool. What is not used at the end of the evening is divided out equally amongst the contributors.

 

[psneeld]

the only rule is there are no hard and fast rules....

local customs apply, if you have figured them out and all works out in the end.

it shouldnt be a big deal from one end of the spectrum to the other no matter what mistake was made....

 

[Pedro]

Just adding my two pence.
It's not obligatory to tip a taxi driver in England but usually people do with some loose change, if the drivers throws it at you take his number and report him.
I never came across an Australian that tips and its even hard to get them to buy a round of drink. In Ireland if you are in company it is normal etiquette for each married male (accompanied by his wife) to buy a round of drinks in turn. If there are a large group having an evening meal and drinks its customary for every male to place say 40 Euro into a (kitty), pool. What is not used at the end of the evening is divided out equally amongst the contributors.

I am sorry, my mistake, the coin trowing occurrence was in Paris, not England.

 

[ssobol]

The server doesn't pocket the tip; it's pooled and shared by the entire kitchen staff. It's not the custom everywhere on earth, but it certainly is in the US and the waitstaff and others depend upon it.
....

That is not the case in all restaurants. Some places the wait staff keep the tips and the wage they get from the restaurant reflects the expectation of tips (legal under US law), the kitchen staff are paid a reasonable wage. In some places, the owners get the tips and may keep some or all of it themselves.

Someone I know who has worked in that industry for awhile says that you can pay the bill on your CC, but the tip should be in cash because that way the staff is more likely to actually get it. If they have to go to the owner to get the tip from the CC ticket, they may be out of luck.

I have know some waiters in the past from fancy restaurants and they made in the 6 figures and lived way better than I did. Even now the person I mentioned above can make hundreds or even thousands of dollars/night in tips just by waiting tables at a fancy (i.e. $$$$) restaurant.

Which brings up another point. The work involved in serving a party of 6 at the local Red Lobster and at a very fancy restaurant is about the same. Yet the Red Lobster waiter might make about $30 bucks for the seating while the waiter at the fancy place will make a few hundred bucks. The extra work will probably involve opening a pretty expensive bottle of wine or two. I would argue that the Red Lobster job is more work, because of the mass appeal and level of chaos vs. some small expensive French place.

I have also been chased out of a Chili's in FL because the French guy I was with (and paid the bill) thought a $1.60 tip was more than sufficient.

 

[Greatlaker221]

While the company owners may make a bunch of money, few of the employees are anything but lower middle income at best......unless there is way more to the story involving company work outside of assistance towing.

These sky high one time payments are often settled for way less....the cost of running these boats can be pretty expensive when every year or so you are replacing expensive gear (go price 600 feet of 3/4 to 1 inch towline) or running them into pkaces m9st never go and overtent the engines due to mud etc....

Nope, have to disagree....

If every day was a $13,000 day I might agree..... but there are many zero days and many minus days too, like a lot of businesses.

I also do commercial assistance towing. When I worked on the great South Bay, on Long Island, I got tipped maybe 25% of the time. Usually $20. When I worked on Lake Michigan, maybe 1 in 20 tows and never by a sailboater. Members are generally happy to see you and tip more often, Non members are too busy telling you they are sure they paid up this year, are usually pissed off, and rarely tip. Captains are on call 24/7, and may get 33% of the tow. If you count all the stand by hours you can make more flipping burgers.

 

[BandB]

Straightening out one misconception. Tip pooling was made illegal during the Obama years. There is a movement within the Trump administration to make it legal again but only when everyone is being paid at least minimum wage without tips.

 

[Gordon J]

Entirely different experience

It is all a matter of culture. In japan, if you try to tip anyone for any service, he will return the money and even be offended. In England, if you undertip a taxi driver, he will curse you and may even trow the coins at you, like it happened me.
In most of Europe, a 10% restaurant tip is plenty, now try that in NYC... Italians never ever tip anything, but if you are a foreigner, a tip is always expected. I could go on and on, based on my travels; I make a point now of asking around when I get to a new place.

I lived in Europe for more than 12 years and still get hack nearly every year. I know of no country in Europe where natives tip,nother than perhaps to round up to the nearest euro, or five if service was exemplary.

However, Americans frequently tip and waiters in Europe have learned to expect it from them. In Europe waiters are professional and get paid. Often, as in Germany, you will even read that all prices include.money for wait staff.

 

[psneeld]

if anyone forgot, the thread isnt about tipping service employees, it is about tipping licensed professional captains whether barely high school graduates or SOBs like me.....

 

[Fletcher500]

If you can afford to give a cocktail waitress a tip for dropping a beer in front of you, you can afford to tip someone who provided assistance to you while on the water. If you can't afford the tip, then skip the bar and buy your drinks at the grocery store.

 

[BandB]

if anyone forgot, the thread isnt about tipping service employees, it is about tipping licensed professional captains whether barely high school graduates or SOBs like me.....

And I'd still tip. Especially when using a tow membership. Would have to be a worse SOB than you by far for me not to.

I've not yet ever had a tow. However, I've utilized tow captains of both firms many times for local information. The very thought that if needed, they're there to help me with a tow is worth a tip to me. If they show up timely, act professionally, and are courteous, then I definitely think that is worthy of a tip. I didn't live on the coast or cruise the coast prior to Boat US Tow and Sea Tow. When I'm in areas without them, I worry about "what if." I can say that if I needed a tow, I'd be so relieved when they arrived and so appreciative when they got me back to the dock.

I know the talk that you don't tip professionals. Well, when it's 15 degrees out in NC and the owner of the HVAC company is at your house at 11:00 pm finishing up repairing your Heat Pump and you feel warm air inside where the temperature has dropped to 55 degrees and he's not even charging a premium for overtime hours or anything, I tip, and when he says "no" I tell him to take his family out to their favorite restaurant as our apology for pulling him away from them this night, just let us know they enjoyed it. He then accepts the money, then we get a thank you card from his entire family with notes written by each.